Tower to ‘bridge gap’ from Docklands to CBD
The tight Melbourne office market is set to get another 28-storey block, after Victorian Planning Minister Richard Wynne approved a second commercial tower for Lendlease’s $2.5 billion Melbourne Quarter project.
The $180 million building, to be known as Melbourne Quarter Tower, will include 55,000sqm of office space, with large floorplates of about 2000sqm. The building will also feature about 2500sqm of retail space. Lendlease has not disclosed a completion date.
The tower will be at 693 Collins Street in the Docklands, near the western edge of the Melbourne CBD, with the state planning department hoping the building will provide a link between the two neighbourhoods.
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“This is the missing piece of the puzzle that bridges the gap between Docklands and Melbourne’s CBD,” Wynne says.
“Melbourne Quarter isn’t just changing the shape of our city for the better, it’s creating thousands of jobs for Victorians.”
The precinct, near Southern Cross train station, is set to house 12,000 workers and 3000 residents when complete, while the state government says it will create 15,000 jobs during construction.
The precinct boasts a strong environmental focus, with more than half of the site dedicated to public open space
The project has already received approval for another commercial tower with an elevated park, One Melbourne Quarter, where construction has begun. Lendlease is also pushing ahead with plans for a three-tower residential development with retail space and a 1600sqm park, having received approval, despite reports of a looming oversupply of apartments in Melbourne’s CBD and surrounding neighbourhoods.
The developer plans seven buildings in total at the project, including three commercial towers featuring around 130,000sqm of office space.
Both commercial buildings approved so far will target a six-star Green Star rating and a five-star NABERS energy rating.
The elevated park in the precinct will also allow workers to work or take breaks outside their office, Lendlease managing director for urban regeneration Mark Menhinnitt says. Open air workspaces will offer access to wi-fi.
He also notes plans for cafes, bars and restaurants surrounding a new public square on Collins Street. “The precinct boasts a strong environmental focus, with more than half of the site dedicated to public open space,” Menhinnitt says.
Lendlease expects to recycle 90% of construction waste and install 355 kilowatts of solar panels at the project. The developer has been expanding internationally, recently receiving approval to buy and develop a San Francisco city-owned block for about $US70 million ($90.6 million). Lendlease won $US369 million in financing for a luxury apartment project north of Madison Square Park in Manhattan earlier this month.
This article originally appeared on www.theaustralian.com.au/property.
